Top 10 Green Cleaning Strategies for Daycare and Childcare Centre

Keeping up with Green Cleaning for Childcare or daycare cleaning is one of the most challenging tasks. Why? childcare cleaning Our childcare cleaning team ensures top-quality results every time.

Because we need to put the children’s safety on top of our priority list. They are sensitive in nature and do not know anything about what is hygienic and what is not, and for that, we have to take precautions to keep them safe.

In this article, we will teach you how to achieve a safe and clean place for your children who spend time in daycare or childcare centres. Clean Group an Australian green cleaning & office cleaning company in Sydney has been in the childcare cleaning business for more than two decades, and we can serve happy and satisfied customers who run their daycare centres.

Join us while we guide you through the process. We are 100 per cent confident that this article will help you a lot if you are considering venturing into the childcare cleaning market here in Australia.

What Are The Top 10 Strategies in Applying Green Cleaning in Daycare and Childcare Centre?

We all know that chemicals can be hazardous, primarily if your business caters to and deals with children. Green cleaning will be your best alternative.

Chemicals have toxic substances that can harm the environment and the people who are being exposed to them. Apart from this, studies show that chemical-based cleaning agents can cause allergies, asthma, and sensitivity to chemicals.

We researched some tips and strategies on how effectively you can apply green cleaning to childcare setup. Please feel free to go through the list below, Here are the Top 10 Green Cleaning Strategies for Childcare & Daycare Centre:

1. Toys Sanitising in Childcare Centre – in sanitizing toys, instead of using the commercial sanitiser, you can use soapy water and let it dry out in the sunshine.

2. Desks, benches, and diaper stations – clean the surface with warm soapy water. The combination of warm water and soap can get rid of most of the bacteria on any hard surfaces. You may choose from a wide selection of biodegradable detergent that is available on the market.

3. Sink and basin – rub it with a damp cloth and bi-carb soda.

4. Mirrors and windows – wipe them using a crumpled newspaper or paper towel and vinegar. See our guide on childcare cleaning.

5. Microwave and Fridges – for cleaning internally, you may use a drop of vanilla essence in water and scrub the dirt and mildew away using a sponge. You can also use a damp cloth with bi-carb soda in cleaning its exterior. To get rid of an unwanted smell by placing a small container of bi-carb soda inside fridges and microwaves.

6. Floor – you can use warm water on hard floor surfaces. It can easily remove stains and dirt from the surface.

7. Carpet – in cases of stains, you can apply shaving cream to it. You can rinse it off with warm water and leave it to dry.

8. Toilet – instead of using your usual potent cleaning agents in cleaning the toilets, you can use white vinegar and add a small essence of lavender as a great way of safe and green cleaning.

9. Alternative disinfectant – in the cleaning industry, we are very used to using commercial disinfectants which can be bought on the market. In line with this green cleaning campaign, you can use your concoction.

You can prepare your mixture by mixing 500 ml of white vinegar with one-litre water; you can also add 15 ml of the essence of your choice. This mixture is best with vomit, urine, and faeces.

10. Urine Cleaning – accidents happen every time. For urine accidents, you can wash it off with white vinegar or lemon juice with water and let it dry in the sunshine.

If you decide to follow these suggestions and start mixing your green cleaning products, we highly recommend you check for allergies and sensitivities.

Smells and scents can also be an allergy trigger to children. Make sure that all cleaning agents are stored in a safe place far from the reach of children. As you all know, it is a must for you to read and understand labels before using them.

GECA Certification: Understanding Australia’s Green Cleaning Product Standard

Good Environmental Choice Australia is the country’s only independent, multi-criteria ecolabelling programme recognised under the Global Ecolabelling Network. GECA certification evaluates cleaning products across their entire lifecycle — raw material sourcing, manufacturing processes, in-use performance, and end-of-life disposal impact. For childcare centres, GECA-certified cleaning products provide third-party verification that a product meets both environmental sustainability criteria and functional performance standards. This matters because centres cannot sacrifice cleaning efficacy for environmental credentials without risking ACECQA Quality Area 3 non-compliance. Centres engaging professional childcare centre cleaning in Sydney should confirm their provider uses GECA-certified or equivalent ecolabelled products to align green cleaning commitments with documented procurement evidence for the Quality Improvement Plan.

Indoor Air Quality and VOC Reduction in Childcare Environments

Volatile organic compounds emitted by conventional cleaning products represent a significant indoor air quality concern in childcare centres where children spend six to ten hours daily in enclosed spaces. The National Health and Medical Research Council identifies poor indoor air quality as a contributing factor to respiratory illness in young children, and AS/NZS 1668.2 sets ventilation requirements for occupied spaces that many childcare buildings struggle to meet, particularly in older converted residential premises. Green cleaning strategies that prioritise low-VOC and fragrance-free formulations directly reduce airborne chemical exposure without requiring infrastructure changes to ventilation systems.

Practical VOC reduction measures include switching from aerosol spray products to trigger-spray or pour-and-wipe applications, scheduling chemical-intensive deep cleaning for after-hours periods when children are absent, ensuring adequate ventilation during and for 30 minutes after any cleaning activity, and storing all chemicals in sealed containers within ventilated cupboards away from child-occupied rooms. Centres that document these measures in their Quality Improvement Plan demonstrate environmental responsibility to ACECQA assessors evaluating both Quality Area 2 (Children’s Health and Safety) and Quality Area 3 (Physical Environment).

Waste Reduction and Sustainable Cleaning Practices for Childcare

Green cleaning extends beyond product selection to encompass waste reduction across the entire cleaning operation. Reusable microfibre cloths replace single-use paper towels and disposable wipes for routine surface cleaning, reducing landfill contribution while delivering superior cleaning performance — microfibre captures 99 per cent of bacteria compared to approximately 30 per cent for conventional cotton cloths. The NSW Environment Protection Authority promotes waste avoidance as the highest priority in the waste hierarchy, and childcare centres that implement reusable cleaning systems contribute to state waste reduction targets while reducing ongoing consumable costs.

Concentrated cleaning product systems that dilute on-site from a single bulk container eliminate the plastic waste associated with individual ready-to-use bottles. A single five-litre concentrate can replace up to 100 individual spray bottles depending on dilution ratios, significantly reducing plastic procurement and disposal volumes. These systems also reduce transport emissions and storage space requirements. When combined with washable mop heads laundered at 60 degrees Celsius per NHMRC guidelines rather than disposable mop pads, a comprehensive waste-reduction cleaning programme can decrease cleaning-related waste by 70 to 80 per cent. For additional efficiency strategies that complement green cleaning goals, our collection of childcare cleaning hacks includes time-saving systems that align with sustainable practice principles.

What Are The Duties and Responsibilities of Australian Green Cleaner for Child Care & Day Care Centre

What is a safe environment for a child? Children have the right to an education in a safe and healthy environment. By providing a safe place for them to learn, you are ensuring a safe place free from illnesses and with products that are safe for children i.e. green cleaning products and unwanted injuries for them.

 Supervisor Duties for Green Cleaning

• He or she is responsible for ensuring that all daily cleaning activities are carried out to a satisfactory level.
• He or she is familiar with policies that are related to maintaining a safe environment for children.
• He or she checks and documents all the risk assessments, which can be present in the environment.
• He or she responds to the identified cleaning or maintenance issues and risks promptly.
• He or she supports childcare management in researching alternative cleaning options that will be helpful to the business setup.

Cleaner’s Duties for Green Cleaning

• He ensures that all cleaning duties do not compromise the welfare of the children.
• He is responsible for identifying which part of the building, which furniture or areas required prompt attention.
• He reports risk factors like damaged furniture, broken outlets, and any factors that will compromise the children’s safety.
• He is responsible for spot cleaning the education and care service to ensure cleanliness and high hygiene standards are maintained every day.
• He uses minimal cleaning chemicals.
• He researches natural cleaning alternatives that are effective on the premise that he is cleaning.
• He aims to minimize waste by correctly sorting the garbage. Recycling food scraps at meal and snack time.

The Benefits of Green Clean Childcare Centres in Australia

As a professional team of green cleaners for childcare centres, you need to have a well-developed cleaning program in place. Cleaning a child care facility can be a challenge because there are a lot of things that need to be completed on a day-to-day basis.

It boosts your confidence and your overall morale when you are confident with your cleaning results. 

School Pride – we all know the difference that it makes of having a clean school with green cleaning for providing a safe environment. The students and staff take pride in being a part of the institution.

People who are coming and going are amazed at how you keep the overall child care clean and sparkly. This sense of pride will result in vibrant campuses which reflect nothing but positive vibes for everyone.

Administration Cares – as a parent, the first thing that will come into question when we see an unattended, dirty school is why the administration is not doing something about it.

A clean school translates to a caring school administration. You can rest assured that the school cares about the welfare of the children that they have in their care.

Better Environment – same as with offices and other commercial businesses, a clean space invites positivity, so it is important to have a professional cleaning services to spread positiveness. In a school setup, cleanliness will maximize the student’s learning experience. Children can perform and deliver more in a clean educational environment.

Parental Involvement – Parents and guardians are more confident in leaving the school in charge if they know that the administration provides a clean and safe place with green cleaning products for their children to learn and grow. With this, parents are more encouraged to be involved positively.

Productive Teaching – a clean school also has a significant impact on educators and teachers. Study shows that a decent learning environment encourages teachers to be more creative with their teaching approach. It also affects their patience and their overall behaviour while working with their students.

Healthier School Building – the entire building, gives a healthier indoor environment that stays comfortable all year for everyone on the campus.

Onsite Problem Solving – it is easy for you to be spot on when issues arise. This is one of the many advantages of having an onsite cleaner all the time. You can easily cover all the cleaning mishaps or any accidents that may come along the way.

Cost-Effective Cleaning – by hiring Clean Group a professional Australian green cleaner, you can rest assured that all approaches are efficient. Professional cleaners know the proper way to clean, the best tool to use, and the right cleaning chemicals to use in a specific task.

Better Equipment Performance and Longer Life Span for Furniture – professional cleaners offer services like air duct cleaning and steam carpet cleaning.

These cleaning requirements may not be required regularly but will always be needed at least annually. Paying attention to this kind of service is a sure way of increasing the life of the equipment and the furniture inside the premises.

Fewer Absences and Sick Days – clean school means a healthy environment. By ensuring a healthy environment, school staff and students are less likely to get ill, decreasing the chances of being absent.

Childcare cleaning can be a challenge, especially if you are starting up. Just follow these tips, and it will help you heaps of effort in formulating what is useful and what is not.

There are plenty of childcare institutions, and they have different demands, but honestly, they are just after one goal. That is to have a clean and safe learning space for the children.

Please feel free to share your insights about these. You can also drop us a message below and let us know which cleaning topic you want us to discuss in our future blogs. Let us help those aspiring commercial cleaning companies by sharing our best practices.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does green cleaning mean in a childcare context?

Green cleaning in childcare refers to using environmentally preferable cleaning products and practices that minimise chemical exposure to children and staff while reducing environmental impact. This includes selecting GECA-certified or equivalent ecolabelled products, using low-VOC and fragrance-free formulations, implementing reusable microfibre systems instead of disposable wipes, and adopting concentrated product systems that reduce plastic waste. The approach must still meet NHMRC infection control requirements and ACECQA Quality Area 3 compliance standards.

Are green cleaning products effective enough for childcare disinfection?

Green cleaning products that carry both GECA certification and TGA registration can meet disinfection requirements for childcare settings. The key is selecting products that have been tested and registered on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods for antimicrobial efficacy. Products relying solely on plant-based ingredients without TGA registration do not meet the NHMRC standard for disinfection of high-risk surfaces such as nappy change areas, bathrooms, and mouthed toys.

How do green cleaning practices affect a childcare centre’s NQS rating?

Green cleaning practices can positively influence assessment outcomes across multiple quality areas. Quality Area 2 (Children’s Health and Safety) benefits from reduced chemical exposure. Quality Area 3 (Physical Environment) recognises sustainable practices in the built environment. Centres that document green cleaning initiatives in their Quality Improvement Plan demonstrate reflective practice and continuous improvement, which assessors look for when determining whether a service is Meeting or Exceeding the National Quality Standard.

What is the difference between GECA certification and TGA registration?

GECA certification from Good Environmental Choice Australia evaluates a product’s environmental impact across its lifecycle — materials, manufacturing, use, and disposal. TGA registration through the Therapeutic Goods Administration verifies a product’s therapeutic claims, including antimicrobial and disinfection efficacy. A product can hold one or both certifications. For childcare centres, the ideal cleaning product range includes GECA-certified options for general cleaning and products with both GECA and TGA credentials for surfaces requiring disinfection.

How can childcare centres reduce cleaning-related waste?

Switch from disposable wipes to reusable microfibre cloths laundered daily at 60 degrees Celsius. Use concentrated cleaning products that dilute on-site from bulk containers, replacing individual spray bottles. Install refillable soap dispensers instead of single-use cartridges. Implement washable mop systems instead of disposable mop pads. These measures can reduce cleaning-related waste by 70 to 80 per cent while maintaining NHMRC compliance and often reducing long-term consumable costs.

About Clean Group

Clean Group is a Sydney-based commercial cleaning company providing specialist childcare centre cleaning services across New South Wales. Our teams are trained in ACECQA compliance requirements and follow NHMRC infection control guidelines. We use TGA-registered disinfectants and GECA-certified products to maintain the highest hygiene standards in early childhood education environments.

Phone: 02 9160 7469
Address: Suite 1B, 189 Kent Street, Sydney NSW 2000

Conclusion

Creating a safe, healthy, and eco-friendly learning environment for children is essential in any daycare or childcare centre. By adopting green cleaning strategies, facilities can significantly reduce the exposure of young children to harmful chemicals while promoting a hygienic and welcoming atmosphere. From using natural cleaning solutions like vinegar and baking soda to ensuring that supervisors and cleaners follow specific safety protocols, every aspect of green cleaning contributes to a better environment for learning and growth. Moreover, benefits such as improved staff morale, fewer absences, and increased parental trust demonstrate that sustainable cleaning isn’t just environmentally responsible—it’s smart and impactful for everyone involved.

For those seeking expert support in implementing these practices, Clean Group offers over two decades of professional experience in green childcare cleaning across Australia—ensuring your facility stays spotless, safe, and sustainable.

For more helpful insights, explore our guide on complete cleaning guide for childcare center.